Huller-gin.



T. S. GRIMES.

HULLER GIN.

APPLICATWN FILED DEC-2, I916.

Patented Oct. 23, 1917.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

1?. S. GRIMES.

' HULLER GIN.

MPPLICAHON FILED DEC-2,1916.

Patented Oct. 23, 1917.

5 SHEETSSHEET 2.

T. S. GRIMES.

HULLER GIN.

APPLICATLON FILED DEC-2,1916

1,244,196., I Patented 0 3t.23,1917.

5 SHEETSSHEET 3.

I T. S. GRIMES.

HULLER GIN.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-2,1916.

1,244,196, Patented Oct. 23, 1917.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

T. S. GRIMES.

HULLER GIN.

APPLICATION FILED 050.2. I916.

Patented. Oct. 23, v191").

5 SHEET$SHEET 5 mqmgao ated as a huller gin.

rinrrnn snares Parana snares.

THADDE US S. GRIMES, OF COLUMBUS, GEORGIA, ASSIGNOR TO LUMMUS COTTON GINCOMPANY, OF COLUMBUS, GEORGIA, A. CORPORATION OF GEORGIA.

HULLER-GIN.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 23, 191?.

Application filed December 2, 1916. Serial No. 134,714.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THADDEUS S. Grams,

.of Columbus, in the county of Muscogee and State of Georgia, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Huller- Gins; and I dohereby declare the following to be'a full, clear, and exact descriptionof the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to whichit appertains to make and use the same.

My present invention relates to convertible plain and huller gins.

The primary object is to provide improved means for feeding materialinto the gin and conducting the hulls and trash out of the hullingbreast when the gin is oper- A further object is to provide a movablestructure which may be bodily shifted to remove the ginning ribs fromthe saws so as to stop the ginning operation, thus avoiding having thebreast front pivotally hung to the gin casing at its upperor lower end.

As illustrated in the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspectiveview showing portion of acotton gin embodying my improvements with thefront board removed. Fig. 2 shows the front board. Fig. 3 is a verticaltransverse sectional view. Fig. 4 is an end view. Fig. 5 is an elevationshowing the manner of arranging the spikes on the conveyer rollers andthe troughs. Fig. 6 is an end view of Fig. 5. Figs. 7 and 8 show variouspositions of the parts. Fig. 9 shows the formation of the ginning ribsand their attachment to a supporting rail. Fig. 10 is which will beunderstood to comprehend the material from its ends toward its centerand thence through a suitable outlet. As the seed cotton and hulls arefed onto the the center of each of the conveyers.

top conveyer throughout the length thereof they pass toward its ends,and in contact with the saws where the seed cotton itself is pulledthrough the ribs by the saws and the hulls and trash stripped ofi andleft hehind, it being understood that this is a gradual process, so thatby the time the material reaches the outlet for discharge at the centerof the lower roller, the hulls and trash have been (separated from theseed cotton, and are ready to be discharged.

As indicated in the drawing, 1 is the breast of the gin having a sawcylinder 2 with alternating ginning ribs 3. The conveyers are designatedby 4 and 5. As shown they consist of a pair of superposed shafts eachhaving two sets of spirally Wound spikes. In Fig. 5 the line A, B,indicates The spikes 6 of the conveyer 4 are so disposed as to conductthe material from the center of the conveyer toward its left hand end,while the spikes 7 are arranged to conduct the material toward its righthand end. From the ends of the conveyer 4 the material drops ontoconveyer 5 where one set of spikes 8 tends to conduct the'material fromthe right hand end toward the center and the other set of spikes 9conduct the material from the left hand end to the center.

10 designates the removable front board of the hulling' breast and itisshown provided with two troughs, either or both of which may beperforated to form screens, the upper one 12 adapted to lie beneath theupper conveyer 4 and having openings 11 at its ends and the lower trough13 adapted to lie beneath the lower conveyer 5. The trough or screen 13is shown formed .with a recess 14 in its edge at the central portionthereof through which the hulls and other refuse matter may bedischarged. It will be noted that I am enabled to feed the material ontoconveyer 4. throughout its entire length. This promotes the rapid workof the gin. Ordinarily the saws are not able to separate the seed cottonfrom the hulls in the hulling breast as rapidly as it can be ginned inthe roll box. One conveyer alone would not effect proper hulling. It isthe coaction between conveyers 4 and 5 which produces the effectiveresults.

A seed apron 15 hinged at 31 is provided with a central opening 16 inline with the outlet 14 through which the hulls and other particles maypass to a hull conveyer 17. The seed, however, will have had opportunityto drop out through the trough or screen 13, and in this manner are keptseparated from the hulls and will be guided by the board 15 into theseed conveyer 18.

As indicated in Figs. 1 and 4 the conveyers may be operated by suitableband wheels 19 and the conveyers may rotate in the same or oppositedirections, their described functions depending only upon the spiralarrangement of their respective pairs of spikes.

As illustrated, the saw shaft 20 carries theginning saw cylinder 2. Inaddition to the ginning ribs .3 intermediate the saws is a series ofhuller ribs 21. 22 is the cylindrical roll box space arranged above thesaw cylinder; 23 is the roll box front and 24 is the lower section ofthe plain front when the machine is being used as a plain gin. See Fig.3. When the parts 23, 24 constitute the front the seed cotton is fedinto the roll box at 25 and is acted upon by the saw cylinder 2 andginning ribs 3 in known manner, 26 being the seed board. When used as ahuller gin front 24 is removed and front 1 attached. See Fig. 7.

In this arrangement of the parts the material is fed in at 28 where itpasses to the conveyers 4, 5 before reaching the saw cylinder 2, passingthrough the hulling ribs 21.

It is occasionally desirable to render one gin inoperative withoutdiscontinuing the motive power which may be operating a battery of gins.For this purpose I provide improved means for moving the breast 'of thegin bodily outward-so that the saws are withdrawn from the roll box andthe ribs are withdrawn from the saws. lln gins as heretofore constructedthe upper part of the breast is hinged at the top and the bottom end isswung out until the saws disappear from between the ribs, or the breastis. hinged at the bottom and moves out at the top. 'By my invention thetop and bottom are moved out at the same time.

Figs. 3 and 4 show thebreast in ginning position and Fig. 8 shows itmoved forward and out of ginning position.

As appropriate means for efiecting this shifting of the roll box andginning ribs 1 have illustrated the following parts. The roll box headsare indicated at 47. They comprise plates one of which is mounted ateach end of the gin and together forming the end head of the roll boxspace 22. The heads 47 also carry the hulling and ginning ribs as wellas the hulling box and the removable front boards 10 and also theconveyers 4 and 5. I provide for shifting these roll box heads laterallyto cause the parts to assume the I positions shown in Fig. 3 when inginning position or out of ginning position as in Fig. 8. Each of theheads is formed at its lower end with a recess 33 adapted to receive ashaft 34 which carries rollers 35. ers are formed with teeth 36 on oneside adapted to be received by recesses 37 formed on a bracket 60 in thegin leg 49. On their other sides each of the rollers is formed withrecesses 38 to receive teeth 39 on a bracket 54 on the lower end of thehead 47. These parts are clearly shown in Fig. 7.

At their tops the roll box heads are connected by links 46 and 61 to ashaft 43 having an operating handle 42 (Fig. 4). Rods 44 connect thehandle 42 with bell crank levers 45 on the shaft 34 which carries therollers 35. The handle 42 is provided with a lug 48 which is adapted,when the handle is swung to shift the heads outward, to engage the rod44, the latter acting as a stop and links 46, 61 being ofi center as inFig. 8.

The roll box front 23 is hinged to the heads as at 55 and the hullerfront head 27 is hinged as at 57. The removable front 10 is hinged tothe huller front head 27 as at 56.

As appropriate means for mounting the ginning ribs 3 l have shown themsecured to rails 40, 41, mounted in the heads 47 The huller ribs 21 areshown mounted at their upper and lower ends on rails 29, 30,

secured to the huller front heads 27.

The operation of the parts thus far described for moving the ginningribs out of ginning position is as follows: The handle 42 is swungforward, or in the direction of the dart, Fig. 4, until the lug 48 con--supporting the weight of the gin breast.

When the parts are moved in the reverse d rection, that 1s, to placeribs 3 into ginning position, their movement is limited by Theserollbrackets or stops 58 and 59, the former acting as .a buffer for therail 40 and the latter for rail 41, these stops being formed in theframe of the machine.

Another important feature of my invention resides in the roll box front23. This is provided with a beveled extremity 23 and it describes asliding movment over rail 29 as it closes, or, if the gin is being usedas a plain gin, then it describes asimilar movement over seed board 26of the front 24. (Fig. 10.) This forms a joint sub stantially at rightangles to the radius having for its center the fulcrum 55 of the part23. A lug A on the head 47 forms a stop for the front 23. By this meansthe front may be closed without encountering interference from the seedthat may fall from the roll box because the substantially shearingaction of the extremity of the front as it closes will brush from therail any seed that may have collected there. It has heretofore beencustomary to provide a substantially square joint between the hingedroll box front and the rib rail. This permits seed to collect upon therail, and prevents the front from closing, in consequence of which ithas been customary in starting the roll to move the entire breast orroll box into or out of ginning position. By my invention the roll canbe started by a slight movement of this front in and out of position. Y

I also provide a novel form of ginning rib so formed that it will beproof against choking. As partially shown in Figs. 3, 7 and 8, and indetail in Fig. 9, the rail ll is formed with a strip 50 at its edgeadjacent the saw cylinder, that is at the point of engagement of theribs. Each of the ribs is provided with a lug or rojection 51 whichbears against the front cc of the rail and the rib is rabbeted toreceive the strip 50, the extremity 52 of the rib being suitably securedto the rail. As will be understood the main portions of, the ribs arejust sufficiently spaced apart to admit the saws. Just over the strip 50and extending rearwardly therefrom each of the ribs is formed with arecess 53. The meeting edges of adjacent ribs thus form a widened slotat this point. At their point of contact with the strip 50, however, andrearward therefrom the ribs are in close contact. I have found that inginning it frequently occurs that the lint will gather around theginning ribs at their extremities and will become tied. The purpose ofthe described construction is to overcome this tendency. Thestripprevents the ends of the cotton pulled through the ribs from beingcaught in the joint between the ribs. The slot formed by the adjacentcut away portions of the ribs constitutes an opening affording readyrelease of the cotton partially pulled through by the saws and enablesthis cotton to get back into'the roll. This ginning rib is embraced by acopending application for patent filed June 15, 1917 Serial No. 175,008.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a cotton gin, a saw cylinder and a pair of superposed conveyers, afeed space being provided above and throughout substantially the lengthof the upper conveyer and thecylinder, the upper conveyer having meansfor conducting the material from the center of said saw cylinder to theends thereof and discharging it onto the lower conveyer, said lowerconveyer having means for conducting the material from each endof thesaw cylinder back toward its center and there discharging it.

2. In a cotton gin, a saw cylinder, an adjacent conveyer, a feed spacebeing provided above and throughout substantially the length of saidcylinder and said conveyer, and a second conveyer adapted to receive thematerial from said former conveyer and having two sets of spirallyarranged elements adapted to continuously conduct the material towardits center, and

an outlet at the center of said second consaid ribs are mounted, andmeans for bodily and laterally shifting said frame relatively to saidsaw cylinder to move said ribs into or out of ginning position. v

5. In a cotton gin, a saw cylinder, a roll box, a plurality of ginningribs, a frame on which said box and ribs are mounted and means forshifting said frame bodily and laterally into and out of operativerelation to said saw cylinder.

6. In a cotton gin, a saw cylinder, a roll box, a plurality of ginningribs, a head at each end of said roll box and supporting the latter andsaid ribs, rollers on which said heads are mounted, and means forshifting said heads bodily and laterally into and out of ginningposltion.

7. In a cotton gin, a frame, a saw cylin-' in said recess, ribs carriedby 'said heads,

rollers on said shaft and movable in said recesses and supporting saidroll box heads, and means for shifting said heads on said rollersrelatively to said gin saw.

9. In a cotton gin, a movable breast, rollers on which said breast ismounted, bracketsfor supporting said rollers. and having toothedengagement therewith, and means for shifting said breast toward and awayfrom the gin casing.

10. In a cotton gin, a roll box having a 5 oivoted front and a seedboard, said front, in its closing movement,-- being adapted to pass oversaid seedboard closely adjacent thereto.

' 11. In a cotton gin, a roll box having a 10 pivoted front and a seedboard, said front being adapted to swing in an are over said seed boardin its closing action.

12. In a cotton gin, a roll box, a front naaa ee therefor having apivotal connection to said face adapted to lie adjacent the extremity ofsaid front when the latter is closed, the

contiguous surfaces formed by said front and board being atsubstantially right angles to the radius having said pivotal connectionfor its center.

in testimony whereof, I have signed this specification.

THADDEEUS S. GRIMES.

